Stingray5

Yow! That's one damn fine figure of a bass you have there, sir!

Nice one! What's the colour? Black? I'm afraid I can't make it out in the picture.

I guess I've usually hovered between Elites, EB's and Rotosounds depending on what deals might be going though have tried many others over the years. Previously, my Tune 6-string had a set of Jackson's. I bought 3 sets on a trip to the US - $25 a set. Which was nice! I've also used Trace Elliot strings, ranging from their BLX series to their regular sets for both electric and acoustic bass. I had a brief deal with Gibson a few years ago so was able to try their bass strings for a while. Actually not bad but I probably wouldn't have considered them above the usual suspects otherwise. Ultimately, it's trial and error til you find what feels right for YOU. Best strings for me would be anything that was permanently 2 weeks old, i.e., just played in enough to take 'newness' off but still have a brightness to them to the end!

Yeh, works for me most definitely, though I must admit I'd prefer a contoured top. But then, you do have that lovely binding too. I've also always preferred the look of the single pup Musicman basses.

My avatar says it for me!

[quote name='xzodar' post='381003' date='Jan 15 2009, 09:22 AM']Of course, you could create your pdf and then save it somewhere safe such as [url="http://drop.io"]http://drop.io[/url] and call it something like 'JJTee_basspdf' so that no one would be able to guess what it is or download it :-)[/quote] Something like drop.io, as mentioned above, might well work but if not I've PM'd you anyway. Ta muchly!

When I first started playing bass, I borrowed a friends 'Top Twenty' for a while until I could sort out my own instrument. I think he actually bought it from Woolworths (c.1969-ish) but I have no idea what he paid for it. Probably around 'nineteen pounds, nineteen shillings and eleven pence' (£19/19/11) or something like that? For the post-decimal among you, that's one old penny short of £20! (Jeez - talk about showing your age!!! ) Anyway, so strictly speaking my first bass was this: First bass was : Hayman 4040 From : 1971 It cost : £155 Which today is : £1653.85 Just out of interest: Second bass was : Rickenbacker 4001 From : 1974 It cost : £325 Which today is : £2707.25

I'm also not a legal bod but I think you're ok provided it's for educational purposes and, as you've already rightly stated, you're not selling them for profit. It's quite a task you've set yourself but one that I'm sure all BCers will appreciate - and find most educational...

Totally awesome looking bass, Peter. Nice contrast between the back and front. Enjoy!

A damn fine pair, sir!

[quote name='Jase' post='366809' date='Dec 31 2008, 01:55 AM']Has anyone mentioned Tony Franklin? I'd never seen/heard Hodgkinson....just been watching this [url="http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=_gutdzlHK6E&feature=related"]Cool as hell![/url][/quote] I remember reading a Stanley Clarke interview years ago where he cited Colin Hodgkinson as one of his fave bass players.

That is one classy looking bass!

'Best of' lists will always be subjective though usually good for an argument or two! I would widen the scope here by adding: - Percy Jones (Brand X) - Colin Hodgkinson (Back Door) - Danny Thompson (John Martyn a.o.)

[quote name='Chris2112' post='362835' date='Dec 24 2008, 02:48 PM']I hear a lot of people really like Status necks on Stingrays. If I had a Stingray I'd go for one right away. Not just for the sonic benefits but because a graphite neck gives me a peace of mind that wood just doesn't![/quote] I hear ya! I know from other previous BC posts how converted 'Rays have been improved. I may just have to add one to my GAS list.

Looks like a nice bass. I always thought those carbon-graphite necks looked so cool but never had da noive to go for it with my StingRay.

Wow - bargain! But I really can't justify a second one at the moment. Now had it been a fretless......Yowzah!

They don't seem to appreciate the value of bass...!! [url="http://www.myspace.com/fallingredband"]http://www.myspace.com/fallingredband[/url]

[quote name='chris_b' post='356402' date='Dec 16 2008, 09:32 PM']Allbang's was a great shop. Good quality gear and friendly staff. If it's the one I'm thinking of, Tempo changed into the Flying Pig music shop. I don't get up that way much these days but it was still there a few years ago. Did anyone make the trek up to Charing Cross Road on a Wednesday for the early edition of Melody Maker, to get first dibs on the Musicians Wanted adverts?[/quote] Ah, of course.... I knew Tempo rang a bell for some reason. You reminded me that it did indeed become Flying Pig, which is where I bought my TE combo 10 years ago. I remember the ads for Allbang & Strummit but I don't think I ever made it to the store itself.

2 steps forward, 1 step back?

[quote name='bassace' post='356098' date='Dec 16 2008, 04:01 PM']We used to get the train from Reading up to London to window shop. I can't remember too much, but can recall quite a few shops up Shaftsbury Avenue including one that sold Trixon drums. Saw Adam Faith in there; he was very tall. There, I told you my memory wasn't too good. At the Picadilly end of CCR was Denman Street that had Foote's where you could go down to their basement and see rows and rows of double basses. I bought my first one there, carved not laminated for £35. It wasn't too good but that's all I could afford. I chatted to a nice black guy and when he left the shop the assistant said 'that's Ray Brown'.[/quote] I also got my double bass (now long gone) from Foote's. As I remember they were in Golden Square at the time (1977). In fact, I had lessons with the manager of the bass department, Ron Berkshire. I lived in Brixton back then and used to go to The Plough pub on Stockwell Road where drummer John Steven's used to run the Jazz nights. Walked in one evening to the delight of finding John with Jeff Berlin and Alan Holdsworth getting ready to go on. Great night. And all for free! Also used to see Soft Machine bassist Roy Babbington there and chatted with him about a few lessons. Sadly, I had no car at the time and he lived too far away. I envy you, bassace, for having met Ray Brown. Nice one!

[quote name='Earbrass' post='355726' date='Dec 16 2008, 10:36 AM']Of course, when I was a lad it was all just fields. But try telling that to the young people of today....[/quote] ...aye, and we used to live in a hole in t' ground and lick road clean wi' our tongue...!!

[quote name='leschirons' post='355858' date='Dec 16 2008, 12:26 PM']Burns, as you said, under Centre Point was where I saw my first "star" in the flesh. I was in there with my brother who was our guitarist, and, out of the Rolls Royce stepped Bruce Welch and Olivier Newton John, with a guitar case. He was dropping it off for Hank Marvin for some repair work. I wasn't in awe of stars but couldn't take my eyes off Olivier Newton John. She was seriously fit. That was 40 years ago when I was 16.[/quote] Ah, I remember when she was a trio: Olivia, Newt & John!!!! Actually, I well remember her too. Cliff Richard had a TV show in the 70's and it seemed she was guesting on their almost every week. She hooked up with a fellow Aussie (or Kiwi?) named John Farrar who in turn helped form Marvin, Welch & Farrar. They had a great sound for the time with some very tasty vocal harmonies too.

[quote name='chris_b' post='355514' date='Dec 15 2008, 11:48 PM']This was a long time ago, but, did anyone go to the Burns music shop (the guitar and amp maker) which was under Centre Point? I played my very first bass through an amp in that shop!!! It was a Rickenbacker. They had individual booths to try out the gear and all the assistants wore ties![/quote] Wow, yeh, the Burns shop. that's one I did forget about. Probably because I didn't really go in there much. We used to regard it as 'outside the zone' or 'a bit posh and not one of the lads'. Chappels of Bond St was another (later on though, my classical guitar came from there). Ah, the naivete of youth!

[quote name='NancyJohnson' post='355424' date='Dec 15 2008, 10:10 PM']Also in a musical bent, does anyone remember a basement record store a couple of hundred years from Centrepoint called Simons? They were on the Wardour Street side of Oxford Street. I always remember everything was hideously cheap in there...usually European imports.[/quote] I remember Simon's. I worked for a record retail/wholesale company who used to stock them up. Loadsa deletions and cut-outs, many from Warner Bros and CBS as I recall. I used to also work for a record chain that had stores in the city and west end. We had a shop in Dean Street too and one time (c.1976) I decided to pop in one evening (they were open late) and to my surprise a band was setting up to play in store. It was Landscape with a very young looking Andy Pask on bass. Blew me away they did.

[quote name='lonestar' post='355399' date='Dec 15 2008, 09:43 PM']Before it was taken over by the leather jacket shops Carnaby St had some pretty cool shops, well cool to a teenager with hippy tendencies anyway. Shops selling wave machines and Roger Dean posters, plus a shop selling really cheap imported albums. Strange thing was that they were in single rather than gatefold sleeves. I had a couple of Genesis and Yes albums from there. We often called there en route from Denmark St on the way to warm up in the Sony showroom in Regent St where you could stick on a pair of headphones and listen to Santana on a really expensive system.[/quote] Hah - I used to do the same in Lasky's hifi store on Tottenham Court Road!